Personal Hygiene Changes

Personal Hygiene Changes: Overview

We all have certain habits when it comes to how we look after ourselves, clean/wash ourselves, and dress. We settle into certain routines for a variety of reasons such as comfort, convenience, cost, belief, or principles. Unfortunately, some of these habits can be detrimental to our health.

Personal Hygiene Changes can help with the following:

Autoimmune

Dental / Oral

Depending on the diagnosis, your dentist may recommend various changes to your dental hygiene routine, such as: a softer-bristled toothbrush; a special toothpaste for sensitive teeth that can either block access to the nerve or make the nerve itself less sensitive; a fluoride rinse or gel for sensitive teeth. A sensitivity-protection toothpaste usually takes several weeks to ease pain. Follow the instructions of your dental professional on the regular use of sensitivity protection toothpaste to keep pain from returning.

Eyes / Ocular

In many cases, good eyelid hygiene and a regular cleaning routine may control blepharitis. This includes frequent scalp and face washing, warm soaks of the eyelids, and eyelid scrubs. Eyelid hygiene is especially important upon awakening because debris can build up during sleep.

Female-Specific

Avoid conventional antiperspirants because they prevent drainage of toxins through the sweat glands and cause them to drain into the breasts instead. Natural deodorants don't contain parabens, which are linked to breast cancer.

Infections

One of the important things you can do to combat athlete's foot is to keep the feet dry at all times since the fungus needs moisture to grow. Here are some suggestions to help prevent and treat athletes foot:

Wear absorbent socks, preferably cotton, and wash them in hot water with bleach

Keep your shoes well-ventilated, and give them ample time to dry before wearing again

Open-toed sandals are good to wear as they allow the feet to dry

Before applying any medication, wash and dry your feet, removing any loose skin to allow better penetration of the agent into the infected area

To avoid reinfection, wipe white vinegar or spray a disinfectant on the inside of your shoes

Antiperspirants may also be used, if needed, on your feet to reduce sweating

Dry your feet thoroughly after a shower either with a towel or even a hair dryer.

The best way to reduce the likelihood of infection is regular hand washing, along with not touching the nose, eyes or mouth. The flu is highly contagious disease, spreading mostly by direct person-to-person contact. With the flu, coughing – even more than sneezing – is the most effective method of transmission.

During an outbreak, keep the infected area as clean and dry as possible. This will help your natural healing processes. Some doctors recommend warm showers in order to cleanse the infected area. Afterwards, towel dry gently, or dry the area with a hair dryer on a low or cool setting. Most creams and lotions do no good and may even irritate.

Respiratory

Skin-Hair-Nails

Bathe daily to remove bacteria from your skin, especially the armpits and groin area where the bacteria is most prevalent. Scrub the armpits with a soapy washcloth as that will work better to remove the bacteria than just soap in your hands. Deodorant soap is preferable as it helps fight bacteria more than regular soaps. If you have a serious odor problem, soak for fifteen minutes or longer in a tub of water with three cups of tomato juice added. (Tomato juice also works on you and your pets if you have been "skunked"!)

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Personal Hygiene Changes can help prevent the following:

Dental / Oral

It may be a good idea to avoid toothpaste that contains sodium lauryl sulfate because it breaks up a protective barrier on the teeth and gums, which results in a greater frequency of ulcers. The frequency was reduced in one study by 67%. It is hard to find a toothpaste without it, but people with canker sores should make the effort if the problem does not resolve by other means. Weleda pharmacy in New York manufactures such a toothpaste, and other varieties can generally be found in health food stores.

Infections

For women, poor personal hygiene following urination or defecation can expose the vagina and urethra to bacteria from the surrounding area. To prevent bladder infections, practice good personal hygiene by always "wiping front to back" to keep bacteria from entering and colonizing the vagina and urethra. Wash the skin around the vagina, perineum and rectum daily. Shower or bathe but avoid bubble baths, bath oils and scented soaps, which can act as irritants. During menstruation, change sanitary pads every 2-3 hours and tampons every 4-5 hours. Sanitary pads and tampons containing deodorants or perfumes can irritate the skin, allowing bacteria to enter.

Your body is a highly complex, interconnected system. Instead of guessing at what might be wrong, let us help you discover what is really going on inside your body based on the many clues it is giving.